Mounting device for glazing units



Nov. 11, 1952 a A. L IG T N 2,617,159

MOUNTING DEVICE FOR GL AZING UNITS Filed 00 13, 1949 3nventor X56076 Qegg/M072 7 70666 fdwope Patented Nov. 11, 1952 MOUNTING DEVICE FORGLAZING UNITS George A. Leighton, Toledo, Ohio, asisignor toLibbey-.owenseFord Glass Company, Toledo, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio,

Application October 13, 1949, Serial No. 121,207

1 Claim. 1

The present invention relates broadly to the art of la s in an mo e artcu a to an impr d d v ce o s in; he mo n of ult ple assshe t a ina its Ais. W ll kn wn. mi: i le sheet zi un include two or more sheets of glasssecured together to produce a unitary structure and, because of this,their manner of installation departs considerably from the methodconventionally employed in glazing single lights of glass. Typicalofsuch units is the one beingmanufactured and sold by the assignee companyunder the trade-mark Thermopane. In this particular unit, the glasssheets are secured in properly spaced, parallel relationship by metallicseparator means arranged between the glass sheets and soldered tometallic coatings, provided around the marginal portions thereof, toform a. hermetically sealed structure.

When installing units of this type in a window opening or sash frame,the bottom edges thereof are ordinarily secured in a. bed of glazingcompound. Inthe case of large units,- it has been considered necessaryto employ special soft-surface setting blocks which maintain the 1.:

unit out of actual contact with the framing structure.

Briefly stated, according to the present invention, there is provided anovel mounting device in the form of a specially formed spring clip, aplurality of which may be resiliently attached to a double glazedunih atspaced intervals around the. edges thereof, at the time of itsinstallation. Being directly associated with the glass sheets of saidunit, these clips, in the case of large 1 units, eliminate the necessityfor the use of the usual setting blocks and, at, the same time, affordpositive protection for the bottom edge. of the unit as it is installedin the sash frame.

When the glazing unit is installed in a substantially vertical position,each mounting clip, by reason of its novel construction, willindependently support each of the glass sheets of the double; glazingunit at their lower edges so that, with a plurality of the clips,surface irregularities of the sash or the unit will be compensated forand the weight of the units mass equally distributed.

It is an aim of the invention to provide an improved mounting clip formultiple glazing units which affords spring type, separate supportingsurfaces for the glass sheets of such units whereby any unevenness inthe sash frame, either transversely or longitudinally, will becompensated for and the weight of the unit evenly and uniformlydistributed throughout the frame, thereby reducing or eliminating thecreation of strains and stresses in the unit which would act to rupturethe seal thereof o cause breakage of the glass.

Another objectofthe invention is to provide a mounting clip for multipleglazing units associated with such units in such a manner as to protectthe bottom; edgesf-rom contact with the sash frame without the use ofsetting blocks.

Another object of the invention is to provide a, mounting clip of novelconstruction fo multiple glazing units, said clip being. so formed as toequally space the double glazing unit within a sash frame thereby.permitting equalized fill of glazing compound with respect to eitherface of the unit and the adjacent edges of the frame andconsequently-reducing the time required for glazmg.

A further object of the invention is to provide a mounting clip of thecharacterdescribed, so formed that, in cooperating association withsimilarly arranged clips, balanced spacing of the unit within therabbeted portion of a sashor Window framing structure will be effectedwhereby the glazing compound may thoroughly seal said unit around itsentire perimeter.

A further object of the invention is to provide a mounting clip of thecharacter described adapted to frictionally grip the surface of a sashframe thereby sustaining the multiple glazing unit from shifting andwithout the use of points or other securing devices A still furtherobject of the invention is to provide a mounting device of multipleglazing units that is characterized by its exceedingly efficientfunctioning, ease of installation, strength ofconstruction and economyof manufacture.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent,during the course of the following description, when taken in connectidnwith the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings,- wherein like numerals are employed to designate likeparts throughout the same:

Fig. l is a front elevation illustrating a, window glazed with the clipsof the invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one form of double glazing unit showingthe mounting clips arranged thereon;

Fig. 3 is a perspective of a preferred form of mounting clip constructedin accordance with the invention;

Fig. 4 is avertical, transverse section on line 44 of Fig. 1; v

Fig. 5 is a vertical, longitudinal section on line 55 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary detail of a modified form of gripping means forthe mounting clip.

With reference now to the drawings and particularly to Figs; 1 and 4,there is disclosed a window, the panes of which are composed of multipleglazing units 9, mounted in a sash H! by the spring clips ll of theinvention. By way of example, and in nowise to limit the scope of 3 theinvention, the window sash or frame 10 in which the units 9 are mountedhas been illustrated as a conventional metal sash, movably orstationarily arranged within the window opening l2.

The multiple glazing unit 9, as shown, comprises two sheets of glass itand M (Fig. 4) spaced from one another to provide an insulating space l5therebetween. Arranged between the glass sheets (3 and M and soldered tometallic coatings [6 provided around their marginal areas, is a metallicseparator strip IT. Although there has been illustrated here, by way ofexample, a type of multiple glazing unit, manufactured and sold by theassignee company under the trademark Thermopane (more particularlydisclosed and claimed in Patent No. 2,235,680, dated March 18, 1941), itis to be understood that the invention may be used in the mounting ofother types of multiple or double glazing units; also that it is adaptedto the mounting of units comprising three or more sheets of glass.

It will be noted from Fig. 4 that it is possible to mount a doubleglazed unit 9 in a window frame in with the clips l I as the solemechanical mounting means. Heretofore, when installing Thermopane unitsof a size necessary for large, single sashes, picture or store windowsand in which lights over 80 united inches were employed, it wasconsidered necessary that they be supported on soft surface settingblocks. Such blocks were made of soft rot-proofed wood, soft lead, or ofsteel or aluminum with soft lead tops, and were required to be of thesame width as the thickness of the unit to be glazed. The mountingblocks had to be located on the sash or frame to sustain the unit aboveand substantially level on the sash. They were located in place beforethe installation of the glazing unit and constituted an additionalexpense, and time-consuming factor, in the glazing procedure.

According to the present invention, however, and by employing the novelglazing clips H, the use of setting blocks can be entirely eliminated,

with a corresponding reduction in cost, glazing time and number ofmechanical glazing devices reouired.

The special spring type glazing clip of the invention can best be seenin Fig. 3. In its preferred form, it is substantially U-shaped, beingprovided with upwardly directed sides l8 and I9 rising convergently fromthe central web or base 20. The clip is preferably formed of thin,tempered steel plate and may be, by way of example, of 28. gauge mediumcarbon steel which may be cadmium plated or cement coated according totrade demands. When the sides 18 and 19 are struck or otherwise bentfrom the base 20, the elasticity of the metal supplies a desired amountof resilien y when the clip is operatively associated with the doubleglazing unit. The sides 18 and [9 thus constitute opposed grippingportions of the clip and to increase the efiectiveness of their action,the outer edges 2! are spaced apart a distance slightly less than thethickness of the unit with which the clip is to be employed. These outeredges 2! are suitably rolled or bent over, as at 22, so that theengaging surfaces will be provided over a relatively smooth, continuingarea.

By reason of the inward inclination of the sides l8 and 19, the base 20is considerably wider between the corner areas 23 at the juncture of thesides and the base. The corners 23 on their exterior surfaces may thusprovide shoulders, as

4 indicated at 24, which serve to locate and space the unit 9 from anyportion of the sash frame, as will be more fully hereinafter described.

In the base 20, and preferably equally spaced between the ends thereof,are a pair of tongues 25 and 26. The tongues are struck from the base 20so as to project diagonally upward from the bend areas 21 and 28 oftheir formation. Preferably the tongues 25 and 26 rise from the oppositecorner areas 23 of the base 20 and so that the tongue 25 will bediagonally directed toward the side [9 while the tongue 26 will extendtoward the side 18. The free end 29 of each tongue is suitably arched,as at 30, to provide ample support or bearing surface upon which a glasssheet of the double glazing unit may be supported. Since the tongues areadapted to flex along their bend areas, they actually are spring leavesflexible about their anchored portion.

As shown in Fig. 3, the end areas 31 of the base may be pierced orotherwise ruptured to create protruding friction areas 32 that areforcible, when the clips are located on a portion of the sash, into thematerial thereof, or the surface coating thereon. As will be noted inFigs. 3 and 5, the protrusions 32 act to frictionally hold the clips inposition and cooperate, at the bottom and top of the unit, to sustainsaid unit from displacement and against ordinary pressures to bewithstood by window enclosing structures. In Fig. 6, there is shown aslightly modified type of friction area which is embodied in an extendedtip or prong 33 that is struck from the marginal edges of the clip ateach end so as to project outwardly and downwardly when the sides of theclip are bent upwardly with reference to the base.

Prior to installation of a double glazing unit 5 into a sash or frame,such as the frame l0, mounting clips H are arranged along the bottom andtop edges, as is shown in Fig. 2. In so locating these clips, the outerend 2| of one side is placed over the edge of the unit and the oppositeside is sufficiently flexed until the same can be snapped over theopposite edge of the unit. The clip is then forced inwardly until thetongues 25 and 26 engage the edge surfaces of the glass sheets, such asthe sheets I3 and 14. As shown in Fig. 4, the arched surface 30 of onetongue 25 will now engage one glass sheet l3 of the unit 9 while thesurface 30 of the oppositely directed tongue 26 will engage the otherglass sheet It. In the case of thicker units, such as may be comprisedof three or four sheets of glass, the accommodating size of mountingclip will locate the arched surface 30 of each tongue so that it willengage the outer sheet on each side of the unit and thus adequatelysupport the same.

The mounting clips H, now associated with the unit 9, and particularlyalong its bottom edge are placed in the bed of glazing compound on thesash frame. As herein shown, the sash frame I!) is of the conventionalmetal construction having a T-section which comprises a horizontallydisposed leg 34 and a vertical web 35 which constitutes the face of theframe; however, it will be quite apparent that various other structures,such as wood sashes having a rabbeted glass receiving section arecontemplated in the use of the mounting clips. In placing the unitwithin the open area of the sash and, by way of example, on thehorizontal leg 34, the clips act to effectively protect the unit fromcontact thereby reducing or eliminating any possibility of chipping orfracture. As previously set forth, in th; case of large size glazingunits,

the lower clips II also reduce the glazing time by eliminating the useof setting blocks upon which the units have heretofore been supported.

The upper edge of the unit is now directed inwardly of the sash; in thisinstance, the upper mounting clips H are employed as pressure points tospring the unit into a vertical position within the frame. Since thebases 20 of the clips are spaced, by the resiliency of the tongues 25and 26, from the edges of the unit; in one instance, said unit will nowbe supported above the top surface of a horizontal leg 34 of the sashframe while in the other, the base sections of the clips at the top ofthe unit and adjacent the under surface of a leg 34 are adapted toabsorb the force of the inward thrust as said unit is moved into avertical position. In either event, the inward sliding displacement ofthe clips with respect to the double glazing unit Will be compensatedfor by individual fleXure of the tongues 25 and 26 and the unit 9eventually will become balanced vertically within the frame.

As particularly shown in Fig. 4, a double glazing unit 9 is thussupported on the leg 34 of the frame by the clips H. Upon further inwardmovement, by pressure equally distributed at the top and bottom of theunit, the bed of glazing compound, as indicated at 36, will be forced orsqueezed out until the shoulders 24 of the clip contact the inner faceof the web of the frame I0. This will ordinarily effect a reduction inthe amount of glazing compound required by assuring a minimum thicknessof compound throughout the installation.

The upper and lower edges of the unit being provided with clips II andpreferably near the vertically disposed sides of the unit, thecontacting of the shoulders 24 of the several clips ll automaticallyassures an even space between the unit and the frame at all pointswithout manual adjustment and repeated shifting of the unit. Acontinuous seal of the compound 38 is thus also established tothoroughly enclose the unit and without detraction of appearance byirregular filling of the compound.

As the unit is finally placed in the sash frame, its normal weightreacts upon the tongues 25 and 26 to substantially balance the unitsince each of the glass sheets 13 and I4 is independently mounted andone or the other will individually affect the flexing of the tongue withwhich it is associated. Moreover, when the leg 34 of the frame I0 is notsubstantially horizontal or parallel to the unit, either longitudinallyor transversely, the resilient relation of the tongues 25 and 26 to thebase 20 causes the base to suitably locate itself on the surface of theleg 34 while the tongues rise or are depressed until the weight of theunit is evenly distributed across and between the bottom edges of theglass sheets. Consequently, the entire weight of the unit can not beborne by one sheet of glass, and strains or stresses, such as wouldrupture the seal between the sheets, will not be set up. This isparticuand dust which practically destroys the efficiency and insulatingeffect of the structure. In extreme cases, the supporting of such a unitby one sheet only may cause fracture of the glass and thus render themultiple glazing unit entirely useless.

When the mounting clips II are finally settled in relation to the doubleglazing unit and contact with the frame, the protrusions 32 have becomeforced into the surface or surface coating of the leg 34 of the frameI0. Since each clip has a plurality of such friction areas, each inengagement with said leg, their multiplicity materially increases theresistance normally required to sustain the unit from undue lateralpressure. In fact, when employed in connection with wood sashconstructions, the protruding areas will enter even more efiectively tohold the unit. The installation is completed in the usual manner by afill of glazing compound as shown at 31 in the drawings.

It is to be understood that the form of the invention herewith shown anddescribed is to be taken as a preferred embodiment of the same, but thatvarious changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may beresorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention or thescope of the subjoined claim.

I claim:

A mounting clip for a multiple glass sheet glazing unit of the typeincluding two sheets of glass which are secured together in spacedrelation by separator means arranged between said sheets around themarginal edge portions thereof, said clip comprising a base, resilientside portions extending longitudinally of the base and convergentlyupward therefrom and adapted to actively receive the glazing unittherebetween and to actively grip th two glass sheets thereof, a pair oflongitudinally spaced and oppositely directed tongues of substantiallyequal length struck from the base of the clip and extending transverselyto and diagonally upward from said base in substantially equal angularrelation thereto and toward opposite side portions, and a bearingsurface at the upwardly disposed end of each of said tongues, thebearing surface of one of said oppositely disposed tongues beingdisposed adjacent one of said side portions and the bearing surface ofthe other tongue disposed adjacent the other side portion, saidfirst-mentioned bearing surface being adapted to resiliently support theedge of one glass sheet gripped by its adjacent side portion and saidsecond-mentioned bearing surfac being adapted to resiliently support theedge of the other glass sheet gripped by its adjacent side portion.

GEORGE A. LEIGHTON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Sweet Aug. 2,

